Safety devices are used on architectural structures in a variety of environments to reduce risk. Many environments exist where various poor lighting scenarios occur, for example, dimmed lighting or darkness due to a power failure or smoke resultant from a fire. Risks may occur when people attempt to navigate in poorly lit environments; such risks include physical injury, lack of orientation, lack of information regarding navigation and lack of familiarity with the environment. To mitigate these risks, illuminated safety devices exist that are typically installed on stairs, floors, walls, and handrails such as that disclosed in application Ser. No. 12/215,971 filed Jul. 1, 2008, entitled Safety Handrail Apparatus and Manufacturing Methods, incorporated herein by reference.
But, these prior art devices are deficient in several respects including limitations in design, manufacturability and functionality. One limitation is due in part to material compositions of the device. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,522,861 requires a material mixture including zinc sulfide, copper phosphorescent pigment, bleached aluminum oxide and silicon carbide; U.S. Pat. No. 5,904,017 requires a material including a transparent resin mixed with zinc sulfide particles; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,608 requires lumilux-N pigment carried by a two part epoxy.
Another limitation of the prior art devices is due in part to material requirements such as an adhesive. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,506 requires traction tape with an adhesive; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,360,557 requires a laminate with a pressure sensitive adhesive.
Yet another limitation of the prior art devices is due in part to inflexibility in design, which further results in costly and time-consuming manufacturing. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,898,814 includes a device with multiple parts including an illuminating plane to emit light that is reflected by a reflecting member; U.S. Pat. No. 4,058,942 includes a device that requires a transparent covering strip positioned over a fluorescent material strip; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,554,446 includes a device that requires electrically activated light sources such as seat-mounted lamps, or beacon lamps.
These prior art devices are limited in functionality by only serving as a safety device. There is a desire for improved safety nosing components that provide other functionality, for example, a non-slip surface, dock boat bumper, illumination guide, an illuminated boat fender or advertising medium.
While the prior art devices fulfill their respective particular objectives and requirements, the need still remains for safety nosing components and manufacturing methods thereof that fulfill the deficiencies of these devices and provide additional functionality. The present invention satisfies this need.